Mythical creature
A mystical, mythical, or legendary creature is a creature from mythology or folklore (often known as "fabulous creatures" in historical literature). Some — such as the dragon or the griffin — have their origin in traditional mythology and have at one time been believed to be real creatures. Others were based on real creatures, originating in garbled accounts of travellers' tales; such as the Vegetable Lamb of Tartary, which supposedly grew tethered to the earth (and was actually a type of fern). The traditional unicorn may have come from garbled stories about the rhinoceros and/or narwhal. Examples of the legendary creatures can be found in medieval bestiaries.
Conversely, some creatures downplayed as just storytelling, have been rediscovered and found to be real in recent times, such as the giant squid.
Often mythical creatures are chimeras, a combination of two or more animals. For example, a centaur is a combination of a man and horse, a minotaur of a man and bull. It should be noted that these were not always intended to be understood as literal juxtapositions of parts from disparate species. Lacking a common morphological vocabulary, classical and medieval scholars and travellers would attempt to describe unusual animals by comparing them point-for-point with familiar: the giraffe, for example, was called cameleopard, and thought of as a creature half-camel, and half-leopard.
Many legendary creatures appear prominently in fantasy fiction. These creatures are often claimed to have supernatural powers or knowledge or to guard some object of great value, which becomes critical to the plot of the story in which it is found.
Many legendary creatures have been incorporated into heraldry and architectural decoration. Legendary creatures have also been accepted into many facets of popular culture most notably in fantasy role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons or Everquest, video games, Hollywood movies and power metal bands (such as DragonForce)).
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Ashman, Malcolm and Joyce Hargreaves. 1997. Fabulous Beasts. Overlook. ISBN 0879517794 ISBN 978-0879517793
- Barber, Richard. 2006. Bestiary: Being an English Version of the Bodleian Library, Oxford, MS Bodley 764. Boydell Press. ISBN 085115753X ISBN 978-0851157535
- Conway, D.J. 2001. Magickal Mystical Creatures: Invite Their Powers Into Your Life. Llewellyn Publications. ISBN 156718149X
- Eason, Cassandra. 2002. A Complete Guide to Faeries & Magical Beings: Explore the Mystical Realm of the Little People. Boston, MA: Red Wheel/Weiser. ISBN 1578632676 ISBN 978-1578632671
- Evans-Wentz, W. Y. 2004. The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries. New Page Books. ISBN 1564147088 ISBN 978-1564147080
- Keightley, Thomas. 2000. The World Guide to Gnomes, Fairies, Elves & Other Little People. Gramercy. ISBN 0517263130 ISBN 978-0517263136
- Nigg, Joe. 1995. Wonder Beasts: Tales and Lore of the Phoenix, the Griffin, the Unicorn, and the Dragon Libraries Unlimited ISBN 156308242X
- Nigg, Joseph. 1999. The Book of Fabulous Beasts: A Treasury of Writings from Ancient Times to the Present. Oxford University Press, USA. ISBN 0195095618 ISBN 978-0195095616
- Nigg, Joe. 2001. The Book of Dragons & Other Mythical Beasts. Barrons Educational Series. ISBN 0764155105 ISBN 978-0764155109
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